The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1887-08-20
WRECK OF A B. & 0. TRAIN
ONE KILLED ANDTWENTN-TWD HI RI

Disaster to the Western Express 10y the
Failure of the AR Brakes-Si> Passen =
ger Coaches and IA Locomotive Smashed
The Signal Tower Demolished.
The st. Louis, Chicago and Cincinnati
express, of the Baltimore and Ohio Rail
road Company, Gle from the West ut
Washington city at 30 q clock WcdneS-
day morning, was completely wrecked
on the north branch of the ~, about
IA mile distant from the company's depot.
The engineer was fatally injured, and
died within two hours after the accident
The fireman was seriously hurt, rs was
also a messenger i'll n signal tower. Both
are in critical condition. Three passen
gers were seriously wounded, aud seven
teen were slightly hurt. The train con
sisted of locomotive SOC, two baggage
one mail car, one freight Car, two sleep
ers and two coaches. Fiitytiye passen-
gers were on board at the time. The
casualty resulted from the failure Of the
air break to work as the tram was de
scending the grade into Washington and
it jumped the track just as it entered the
beginning of the "l.' The financial loss
is estimated at $50, 600.
The accident was caused by a failure
of the air brakes to respond to the de-
maud OF the engineer, ). Hamilton Bro
| SuS. The engineer coupled On the big
engine SOC at MartInsburg. ". Va, ami
the tram left that point at 4O2 O'Clock,
aud was due at Washington city at &. 81
| o'clock. There were about % paSSen-
gers on the train, and about Is OF the
| male passengers occupied seats III the
| smoking car, which was directly behini
| the postal ear. The train approached
Queenstown, one mile and a-half distant
| from Washington under speed of thirty
| miles an hour, and the air. brakes were
tested by the engineer and respond to
his satisfaction. 1t is rule of the com
pany that trains approaching Washington
| from the West shall slow mp at this point.
| When the tram left Queenstown it was
| ten minures late. 1t pulled out slowly
under the pressure of air-brakeS, which
| had been applied before the train slowed
up at Queenstown. There is a heavy
down grade from Queenstown to Wash
| iugton and the engineer discovering that
his train was fast gaining speed, at
| tempted to slow up. He tried to use the
air-b brake pressure. but found that it
| would not work. Down the declining
| grade the train Numbered, increasing i'll
speed at every stroke. In this condition
the Western express struck the curve OF
the ''Y.' 1t was then going at The rate
| of not less than sixty miles an hour.
| Quicker than it takes time to write 1t the
| locomotive sped past the tower, but the
| tremendous force of the train parted the
couplings of the cars, aud each car, so to
speak, had to take care of itself. The
engine kept the track until it reached a
point about sixty feet east of the tower
| and then lost it's balance and tell over Oh
its side, near Delaware avenue. The en-
gineer was thrown to the ground and
scadcd to death. The four cars nearest
the engine struck the tower and carried
it away as though built of straw. The
fifth car was crushed under the ruins OF
the tower. The Two sleepers were not
seriously damaged, although thrown
from the track.